Chapter 23
The commotion at the city lord's mansion obviously had no effect on the roadside taverns. After several rounds of drinks, the moon was high in the sky, and the entire city lord's mansion was under martial law. The poet, who had finished his performance, received a generous reward, smiled and bid farewell to the owner, and headed towards the inn.
When he returned to the hotel, the entire hotel was extremely quiet. As he walked through the corridor, he could hear snoring coming from inside a poorly soundproofed door. The poet walked to the third-to-last room at the end of the corridor, opened the door, and went inside.
There were no lights on inside. After he closed the door, he seemed to have lost his soul and collapsed onto the carpet.
It floated away without making a sound.
A figure sat at the table, holding a pen with a piece of paper under his hand. The commotion had not caught his attention. After a moment of thought, he wrote a string of symbols on the paper.
"Ah, it's time to light the lamp," Veris murmured to himself, putting down his pen and turning on the lamp, placing it on the table.
In the middle of the night, the entire town was awakened by the commotion of the guards, who said that the city lord's mansion had been attacked by assassins and that they were searching every house.
"We couldn't find the murder weapon, but judging from the wound, it must have been a very sharp concealed weapon."
"The city lord's mansion is under martial law for the past two days. Anyone who can get into the city lord's mansion is either a highly skilled assassin or an undercover agent who has been lurking there for a long time."
The two adjutants were exchanging words, both with grim expressions. However, when their eyes met, they exchanged knowing glances. Although the city lord was the second son of the duke, he had only one child, a five or six-year-old boy, who had suddenly died. Despite the city lord's wife's feigned composure and ordering the investigation of the murderer, the presence of a widow and her child made them less convincing.
The city gates opened, and a trusted confidant rode swiftly to deliver a message to the Duke in the capital city of Mercury.
The search party quickly arrived at the hotel where Veris was resting. Many guests had been awakened by the noise on the street and gathered on the first floor of the hotel. When they saw the guards break in, they all looked uneasy.
If an attack occurs in the middle of the night, something big must have happened.
Veris stood on the second-floor railing and looked down. There were quite a few other people on the second floor like him. The guards questioned each room one by one, seemingly without leaving any room untouched, but in reality, they didn't bother to distinguish between truth and falsehood.
Upon reaching the second floor, Veris stood near the railing close to the stairs. The guards approached, scrutinizing Veris. Although they hadn't yet asked any questions, they had already dismissed the pale-faced, thin young man.
When did you come to the city?
Veris gave a gentle smile: "Brother, I only arrived here this evening."
Did you go out for a walk tonight?
"I went to the tavern across the street. The owner there was short of poets to perform, so I picked up my tools and earned some money for the trip."
The guards realized: So he was a bard.
They had just come from the tavern, and the owner honestly confessed about any strangers who had come and gone tonight. There were quite a few travelers and merchants coming and going here, and they reported more than a dozen people in a row, which gave the guards a headache. There was also a bard, which was easy to find out. When the incident happened at the city lord's mansion, that bard was still playing a song on stage.
The young man's features matched what the tavern owner had described.
The guards didn't give him any trouble and moved on to the next target.
Veris glanced at them as they questioned the travelers. Everyone in the lobby downstairs had already been questioned, and feeling that there were no problems, he returned to his room.
People on the second floor also started heading to their rooms.
Veris yawned, and just then, the sound of rapid hoofbeats rang out again. A young man ran in and shouted, "The person ran towards the northeast corner! Stop searching and follow them!"
The guards on the second floor left immediately, and the noisy hotel quickly returned to silence.
Back in his room, Veris stood by the window and glanced at the night. The surroundings had quieted down, but he could still faintly hear whispers.
He closed the window, shutting out the uneasy whispers.
The poet's backpack was open. Veris carefully packed away his dried manuscripts, along with the shrunken puppet, and stuffed them into the backpack. A ripple of spatial magic flashed by, and the contents of the backpack, somewhat disorganized, were closed and locked.
Although there are a lot going on tonight, it won't affect Veris's sleep.
The commotion in the small town continued until dawn, ending in a failed arrest.
Once that city lord's head is cut off, there is absolutely no way he can be resurrected.
As dawn broke, the confidants and subordinates in the city lord's mansion, each with their own ulterior motives, were still arguing incessantly.
Veris led his horse, bought breakfast by the roadside, ate it, and slowly left the city gate. After walking a distance, he mounted his horse.
The morning mist settled on him, and Veris pulled on the reins, putting his straw hat back on.
The three small towns he was going to pass through were not on the way to Mercury; in fact, he would have to take a detour.
The lords of these three small towns all had close ties with Duke Mercury, and the large number of guards they commanded were actually Mercury's reserve troops, stationed around the city of Mercury.
Those who issued the orders were naturally the city lords.
First cut off its wings, then capture its commander.
Veris arrived around the second town in the afternoon. This time he did not go in, but paused for a moment on a nearby path before mounting his horse and leaving.
A few ashes of paper fell from the spot and were quickly scattered by the wind.
Meanwhile, in the city lord's study, the city lord was discussing with his subordinates how to deal with the upcoming interference from the Kingdom of Lortheran when suddenly, their conversation was cut off.
The middle-aged man would sit in his seat, and under the horrified gazes of his confidants, he would often slump against the back of the sofa, his head tilted to one side, blood flowing from the corner of his lips, and in an instant, he would stop breathing.
The strong smell of blood made everyone present hesitate to move.
The next second, they saw a mark large enough to cover the face of the suddenly deceased city lord, and someone couldn't help but gasp.
—That's the Orlando cult's bow and arrow symbol!
The sun outside was blazing, but a chill crept up to their feet. Only one thought remained in their minds: those who betray the church, the church is always watching them!
Meanwhile, Veris rode at full speed, bypassing Mercury City, and arrived at a small town north of the main city, near Milford City. This town was heavily guarded, determined to stop Lortheran's advance.
The servant who went to deliver the message last night was also stopped by Veris with a little magic. At this moment, the atmosphere in the city is tense, but not to the point of seeing enemies everywhere.
Veris met with the papal envoy three miles north of the city, at the border between Milford and County Mercury.
The poet reined in his horse, took off his straw hat, and a handsome face appeared beneath his slightly disheveled hair.
While the delegation was still wary of the young man who had stopped them, Veris took out a golden token from his pocket. It was engraved with a bow and arrow symbol and had three red crystals hanging below it. The faces of the nineteen people present changed drastically, and they all dismounted and bowed: "Greetings, Cardinal."
Cardinals are second only to archbishops and hold a high position in the Papacy. Among the nineteen people present, although none of them had seen this unfamiliar cardinal before, the token could not be faked.
Moreover, before they set off, the archbishop had given instructions that a great man would be waiting for them in Mercury.
Veris sat astride his horse, looking down at them, and said, "All heretics in Mercury shall be killed without exception."
The city ahead of them was called Theromir, and it was guarded by Duke Mercury's confidants. Veris led the group toward Theromir, and the others dared not object, following closely behind Veris.
The journey of three miles was over in no time, and they soon arrived outside the city of Serlomir. Scouts who had seen their large group coming reported to the commander-in-chief. Duke Mercury's confidant sensed something was amiss and led a guard to stand two hundred meters outside the city gate, where they indeed waited for Veris and his party.
Seeing that all of them, except for the young man at the head, were dressed in church robes, he sensed something was wrong. His face darkened, he spurred his horse forward, and said, "Gentlemen, the road ahead is temporarily blocked—"
"puff--"
Blood splattered, and the members of the delegation stared wide-eyed as Veris instantly drew the longsword he had obtained from one of the priests and beheaded the general. His pale, handsome face was icy cold, and the surrounding guards, who had never expected this man to be so ferocious, all stood frozen in place.
Veris gave the guards a cold look: "Mercury has declared a rebellion and detained church believers. Anyone implicated will face the death penalty. You all should think carefully about what to do."
Having said that, he deftly sheathed his longsword. A few drops of blood still splattered on his face, making him seem less like the kind pastors and priests of the church and more like a demon from hell.
He pulled on the reins, turned the course, and his clear voice echoed around: "Now, head to the capital city of Mercury and kill the Grand Duke."
The sun's lingering heat fell on the road, raising dust as the group of twenty people headed toward the main city of Mercury, dozens of miles away.
A note from the author:
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The next chapter will be from the hero's perspective! [Let me see!]
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